I recently read a statistic saying that 40 per cent of parents repeatedly cook the same seven meals for their toddler.

If you feel like adding some new recipes to your repertoire, you might want to check out new cookbook for children by kiddy food brand Ella’s Kitchen.

Recently launched “Ella’s Kitchen: The Cookbook (The Red One)” includes 100 “easy, tasty and healthy” recipes for young families and is full of fun ideas for getting children involved in preparing, cooking and exploring food.

Packed with both dinner and pudding ideas as well as snacks, light meals and breakfast ideas, the book contains twists and shortcuts that aim to make life easier for busy parents. – Yes please!

The recipes featured in ‘Ella’s Cookbook’ cater for babies starting solids and then ‘from mush to mash and beyond’ – toddlers too.

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My family is big on breakfast cereals for breakfast – not necessarily because cereal is amazing but because it’s quick, easy and affordable. We do pancakes on a Saturday and something eggy on Sunday but Monday to Friday is milk and oats (pretty much).

So what exactly are healthy cereals?

When I shop for cereal, I look at the sugar and salt content as well as fibre level, whether it’s wholegrain and what preservatives are used. A winner will be a wholegrain cereal that is high in fibre but low in sugar and salt, with no preservatives.

Nutrition expert Catherine Saxelby, author of “Catherine Saxelby’s Complete Food and Nutrition Companion”, recently posted her list ten healthiest cereals online and because her list is similar to what I buy for my family (and based on similar standards to the ones I use when cereal shopping) I thought I’d share it with y’all:

• Sanitarium Weet-a-Bix/ Uncle Toby’s Vita-Brits
• Traditional oats (Uncle Toby’s, Brookfarm, Lowan, Carmen’s)
• Kellogg’s All Bran
• Kellogg’s Sultana Bran
• Kellogg’s Bran toppers/Flakes – good for boosting the fibre of low fibre cereals
• Kellogg’s Mini Wheats, Plain or Apricot or Blackcurrant
• Kellogg’s Guardian – good for boosting the fibre of low fibre cereals
• Uncle Toby’s Shredded Wheat
• Kellogg’s Sustain Goodness
• BarleyMax Digestive 1st

We do Weet-a-Bix, All Bran and oats in my house.

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There has been no study (as far as I know) that says that the way we cut vegetables will inspire children to eat their greens… but I am almost certain of it!…Is this how to get kids to eat veg?!!

Take a carrot for example; it’s much easier to manage both physically and psychologically if it is cut into thin(ish) slivers than if it’s presented as a whole. The same applies to cucumber and tomato too.

Things like broccoli and cauliflower are also more palatable in bite-size chunks.

Now this may sound pretty logical to y’all (and it is) but when I was a kid my mum’s version of a salad was cutting a cucumber into three – one apiece for me and my brothers.

Carrots were delivered whole (never peeled), beans were dished in bunches, tomatoes cut only in half (if we were lucky), and I am sure (but I could be wrong) that mum even used to tear the lettuce into three – a hunk each.

It was a little barbaric (I love you mum) but my brothers and I have grown up with a healthy appreciation for vegetables so there was clearly some method to mum’s madness.

We knew that we had to eat our greens if we wanted to leave the table, and that was it; we obeyed.

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Most of us are aware of the effects of fast food on our skin; overindulgence in fatty, sugary foods can cause inflammation in the skin, which can lead to blemishes, according to Dr Nicholas Perricone.

For this reason (and the obvious health benefits), many mums and dads are strict about what their kids put into their mouths.

That said; it’s sometimes difficult to live by healthy eating standards when advertising, food placement in shops and even other kids’ lunches are all seemingly against our ethics. But here’s a reason to keep at it:

New research by scientists at the University of Auckland in New Zealand has linked asthma and eczema in children to fast food. Fast food doesn’t cause either condition but if the condition is pre-existing, the study showed that eating fast food three or more times a week may cause asthma attacks or eczema outbreaks.

The reason? The high level of trans fatty acids in fast food affects immune reactions.

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We all know that obesity is on the rise; the news loves to remind us, and with good reason too. The importance of one’s health can never be overstated! Especially when kids are involved.

Doctors are the latest to take a hard line against obesity. In a report by The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, UK doctors recommend the following (as reported by bbc.co.uk):

• A ban on advertising foods high in saturated fat, sugar and salt before 9pm.
• Further taxes on sugary drinks to increase prices by at least 20%.
• A reduction in fast food outlets near schools and leisure centres.
• A £100m budget for interventions such as weight-loss surgery.
• No junk food or vending machines in hospitals, where all food must meet the same nutritional standards as in schools.
• Food labels to include calorie information for children.

When I was a child I was indoctrinated into the belief that fizzy drinks come straight outa the pits of Hell; and although it sucked being the kid that wasn’t allowed Coke at birthdays (on most occasions), I am super grateful for her insistence.

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